IRVING, Texas - With the leadership of several donor groups, spearheaded by NFF Board Member Corbin J. Robertson, Jr., the National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame proudly announced today that the organization will annually begin awarding three new $6,000 postgraduate scholarships at specific universities in Texas:

Robertson, who serves as the chairman of the Cullen Trust for Higher Education in Houston, led the effort to pull together the three groups at each school to permanently endow the scholarships. A respected businessman in Houston and an All-American linebacker at Texas who captained the Longhorns to a victory in the 1969 Cotton Bowl, Robertson used his ties at the respective institutions to identify a passionate group of supporters at each school to raise the funds.

"The postgraduate scholarships provided by the NFF are really important because they play the critical role of focusing young men on life skills," said Robertson. "The donors behind these endowments all believe that education is vital, and they got involved because they want to ensure that the top football student-athlete at each of these schools has a chance to attend graduate school. Focusing each endowment on a specific football program will make it more dramatic, hopefully fostering a desire among everybody on the team to compete for these scholarships with the same fire that they all exhibit on the field."

Each school will annually select a top student-athlete on the football team who has exhausted their playing eligibility; maintained a minimum cumulative 3.2 GPA; and been accepted into a postgraduate program. The players will be evaluated based on their combined accomplishments on the field, in the classroom and as leaders in the community. The NFF will collaborate with the schools to announce the inaugural recipients this spring.

"The NFF is extremely excited about this new chapter in our efforts to promote the scholar-athlete ideal, and we are extremely grateful to board member Corby Robertson and all the donors who have stepped forward to make this happen," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning. "The NFF scholarship programs have a rich history of inspiring the next generation, and today's announcement will provide each of the schools and their respective head coaches an important tool for motivating their players to achieve excellence in all aspects of their lives."

The NFF pioneered the concept of postgraduate scholarships in 1959 with the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, proudly supported by Fidelity Investments, becoming the first organization in history to bestow postgraduate scholarships based on a player's combined achievements. Texas, Houston and Houston Baptist, join Michigan, which launched the Coach Bo Schembechler Scholarship at the University of Michigan last year, as schools that have an annually endowed a school-specific NFF scholarship.

"We do our part to honor as many of the top football scholar-athletes from around the country through our national scholarships, but this really opens up a another world of guys who we can honor, allowing us to annually showcase the best at each of these schools," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "There are kids from border-to-border and coast-to-coast who deserve a postgraduate scholarship, and because of Corby's leadership we can now do more in the State of Texas."

The NFF Robert McNair Scholarship at Houston Baptist University will provide an important tool for the young program, which completed its first season in 2013. One of the 37 programs to have launched football since 2013, the Huskies compete in the Southland Conference. Support for the scholarship is being provided by Houston Baptist University, led by President Dr. Robert B. Sloan, Jr., the Cullen Trust for Higher Education and Barbara and Corbin J. Robertson, Jr.

The scholarship at the University of Houston is named for College Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Yeoman, who coached the Cougars from 1962-1986, building a fledgling program into one of the best in the nation, including four Southwest Conference Championships and 11 bowl berths. The donors providing support for the scholarship include the Cullen Trust for Higher Education, Barbara and Corbin J. Robertson Jr., the John M. O'Quinn Foundation, Carroll Ray Robertson, Lillie Robertson and Beth Robertson.

The scholarship at the University of Texas is named for College Football Hall of Fame coach Darrell Royal, who coached the Longhorns from 1957-1975, including three national championships, 12 Southwest Conference Championships and 16 bowl berths. The donors providing support for the scholarship include Alfred G. "Rusty" Allen III, Alan Baum, David S. Ballew, Marvin and Linda Bendele, Bud Brigham, the Cullen Trust for Higher Education, Susie and Don Evans, College Football Hall of Fame member Chris Gilbert (Texas), The Lee and Joseph D. Jamail Foundation,Steve & Dee Dee Massey, Mike A. Myers, Benny Pace, 1968 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Michael W. Perrin (Texas), Emeritus NFF Board Member Chris Plonsky, Barbara and Corbin J. Robertson, Jr. and Charlie Talbert.

The NFF school-specific postgraduate scholarships represents the latest addition to the NFF scholarship efforts. The NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards created the foundation for the organization's efforts in 1959, annually honoring the top collegiate football scholar-athletes from across the country. The program currently provides each member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class with an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship, distributing more than $250,000 each year and awarding more than $11.5 million to 854 individuals since its inception. Since 1990, the NFF has selected one member of the class each year to receive the William V. Campbell Trophy® as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the country.

Other elements of the NFF scholarship efforts include the NFF Chapter Network, which annually distributes more than $1 million to high school and college players; the NFF Faculty Salutes, presented by Fidelity Investments, which annually recognizes the contributions of the faculty athletics representatives at each of the schools with a member of the annual NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class; and the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which recognizes all of the nation's top football student-athletes from all divisions of play who achieved at least a 3.2 GPA throughout their collegiate career.